My Peer Reviews

Doing peer reviews on written works can be really helpful in making that essay, paper or book a lot better. When I did peer reviews in high school I focused on grammar more than anything else. I know for a fact I can't remember what any of those papers were about because my focus was only on grammar. Looking back at some of peer reviews to my classmates I have noticed a shift towards context, detail, and clarity. While reading a peer's paper I do still notice grammar a lot but I have noticed I do it less comparing the first paper, Literacy Inquiry and the second paper, Research Argumentative papers. There is also a noticeable difference in what I do make comments on. On the first paper I remember struggling to find areas in the writing that were confusing, had too little or too much detail. I think it was because it was my first peer review that focused on those aspects of writing. Also I felt like I shouldn't comment too much because it might annoy my peer. On both papers I tried to compliment things I thought were well written or that I agreed with. Doing peer reviews on the second paper was much easier. I realized that my comments were my opinion and it was up to the author to decide to use it or not. I commented on what was confusing to me and added suggestions to how to make it clearer. I also added suggestions on how to bring thoughts together and remove or add detail. I didn't just tell them what needed improvement but I feel like I complimented more on the second paper than the first. Also the things I specifically focused on the Literacy Inquiry was different than the Research Argument paper. The literacy paper was a memoir and I focused more on how clear the story that was being told was and how the reader was able to reflect on it and learn about literacy. The research paper was an academic paper arguing one side of any argument. I focused on how well the author was able to support their argument with facts but also putting their own thoughts in it. I also focused on how well it related back to their thesis and if the quotes they had were used to emphasize a point and they reflected on the quotes instead of just having them there. I have noticed how much easier it has been to peer review if you just write all your thoughts down that can strengthen the context, detail and clarity of your peer's paper.

Virtual Catholic Mass

The two examples of virtual churches/temples were something completely different. It was apparent that these website were set up for people of that religion and I struggled a little to know exactly what I was doing and viewing. This is a bad thing at all. In my opinion the websites were set up for easy usage for the people following that faith. If one took the time they could understand what was going on. I found a website that is similar but not exactly like two examples. The link is at the bottom. This website is a Catholic church website that is in partnership with the TV show that airs a mass every Sunday. You can watch past masses but again the website caters to the people that are Catholic. There is an about me section that briefly explains the Eucharist part of the mass, the fathers, the choir, the lectors, and the staff that help with production. When reading the about me section, it helps a person that doesn't practice this faith understand what the general point or responsibility of that aspect of the mass. It doesn't completely simplify it but it does bring a general understanding. The difference between the two examples, and the Catholic website were how interactive they were. The two examples allowed the viewer to control their own sermon and go at their own pace. The Catholic website were all videos of an actual mass. The viewer could watch the entire mass or watch separate videos of different aspects of the mass.Overall all three websites were designed for people of the faith to be able to go to mass/temple/church when they are busy. A person looking to learn more about the faith can learn from the website but it would take a little more time to navigate the websites and sometimes the information isn't presented very well.

http://thesundaymass.org/

Blogging

When first assigned to keep up a blog for my English class, I really wasn't looking forward to it. I hated writing and I just thought it would take up too much time and I wouldn't have much to say. I was thinking I would just do what was required and leave it at that. I was wrong.

I actually like the blog. I haven't had a hard time writing about any topic. Basically I just figured I will write what ever comes to mind but try and keep a structure. I have noticed that I am starting to like a writing a little bit more. Having the option to have free writes almost half the time, makes it a lot more of a personal assignment than a homework assignment. I think my writing has improved. I know that when writing the Literacy Inquiry I felt like I was able to write more fluently than I used to. The blog has also indirectly taught me to not worry so much about grammar because even in the writing process that is the last thing that is revised. It's more important to have a clear idea and a point. Another reason I like the blogging is that it is all my opinion and I can't be wrong. Even though there is a word requirement it doesn't bother me. I find it pretty easy to write at least 250 words because I just say what is on my mind.

So in general, I was surprised how much I like the blog. It doesn't feel like a typical English class homework assignment because even in the assigned topics, it's your opinion and you're just sharing it.

Review of Peer Review

When I first heard we were to do peer reviews, I wasn't really worried about that at all because I have done it all through high school. But this is not the same type of peer review. In high school it was just looking for a grammar and now it's about how the whole paper is structured and what each sentence means. It definantly was hard to make the transition. I would be reading my peers paper and spot grammatical errors with ease. I learned I really had to slow down and re-read a few times to make sure I understand exactly what they meant in each sentence, paragraph, and how it related to the rest of the paper. 

I really prefer this over what I did in high school. Yes, it is more work, but I'm not one to complain about that. It really helps make the paper stronger. I am also really glad we read that article about how to do it because it made the transition from high school peer review to real peer review a lot easier. The part I really like is that we are allowed to leave whatever kind of comment we want as long as it is relevant to the paper. We can praise our peer or suggest a correction or both in one comment. 

In high school I dreaded getting my papers back from my peers and especially my teacher. The amount of red ink just made me feel like the paper was awful and usually I just corrected the grammar and left it at that. I already look forward to getting my peer reviews back because it is so much more helpful and I know my peers took a good amount of time to make suggestions and comments. 

ROYGBIV or Is It ROYGBBB?

Colorblindness is kind of a misleading word. The word blind means to not be able to see so it's easy for people to assume that a person who is colorblind can't see colors at all. This isn't true at all. Colorblindness is the inability to see certain colors when paired with others. Instead of seeing all the separate colors in a painting, a person with colorblindness will see most but not all because some colors will blend to form one.  Colorblindness is general found in white males. I could talk about the genetics aspect but that's kind of long. If you want to know ask me. Also colorblind people are missing cones in the back of retina that reflect certain colors. I think that science behind it is really interesting because I am colorblind. A fun fact about colorblindness is that it is almost as common as being left handed. 

So some of you might remember that during the Venture activities I shared that I am colorblind. It doesn't bother me at all and that's why I'm comfortable letting people know. I figured it saves any awkward moments in the future. Like imagine if you asked me for a purple marker and I brought back a blue one...I just think that would be awkward if you didn't know. The more you get to know me, the more you realize how much I will joke about it. I don't care if you direct jokes at me either. Chances are I have already heard it. 

What does bother me is when I first tell someone I am colorblind, they quickly interrupt and ask me what color this and that is. I usually responded with a smile and give them an answer that is extremely off. Like if you were to point to a white board I would answer with neon orange or similar. That person is then usually unsure if I am serious or joking. I break the tension but saying I'm kidding and tend to just say what color that object is. I also explain briefly what colorblindness really means. 

As for my what I'm getting to, is colorblindness considered a disability though? I've always felt like it isn't. It doesn't disable me from being a viable part of society. Share your opinions, if you feel strongly that it is a disability I won't be offended at all. 

Inexpensive Fun

Today, a few buddies of mine were hanging out and trying to think of something to do that didn't cost to much. We figured that none of us wanted to spend more than $10 on anything. We sat around coming up with ideas, like play a pick-up basketball game, golf, and disc golf. All those would have been fun but out of no where my friend Kurt said we should buy dry ice and make bombs. 

We all looked at him confused and not really sure if he was joking or not. He went into more detail about what it took. All that was needed was a large amount of plastic bottles, water, and dry ice. We went to Harris Teeter to see how much it would cost. Turns out you can get about five pounds of dry for just under $5. So we bought ten pounds. We went back to the house, found about 35 plastic bottles, filled up two milk jugs with water and headed out to a park. 

At the park we broke up the dry ice and filled a bottle up about one to two inches with dry ice. Then filled the bottle about half way up, sealed the cap tight, threw it away from us and waited for it to explode. Depending on how much dry ice and water you use, the longer it takes to explode. We all knew it would be loud but we didn't expect it to make our ears ring. The bombs are relatively safe because they don't do any collateral damage to the environment around you. For a little less than $10 we had about six hours of booming fun. 

"I'm Hiting In The Bating Cage"

I'm not entirely sure what my dialect would be called. I lived in Indiana up until high school and then moved to Charlotte. I guess the best way is to describe it as Mid-American with a touch of Southerner. In Indiana you don't say soda, you say pop. My aunt told me that they say pop because there was a soft drink called Pop Cola that originated in Indiana. I'm not sure how much of that is true though. Also, I feel like in Indiana it's more proper but maybe that is just how I was raised. My family never used the words ain't and especially y'all until we moved down here. I now use them regularly even though my mom hates it. There is also the difference with sweet tea and an iced tea. I remembered going to a fast food place as a kid and asking for an iced tea and the cashier just looked at me funny. In general the words that are used up there and down here are different but they mean the same thing. 

As for accent, I think it stops at my pronunciation of the letter "T." I'm not entirely sure if it is even an accent, it might just be the way I say the words.  It really isn't noticeable unless there is to hard sounding Ts in one word where the second T is being of a word ending in "-tion." Like if I were to say "I was hitting in the batting cage" it would be more like "I was hiting in the bating cage." I've noticed quit a few people do that with their Ts and always kind of wondered what region that was associated with. 

Lastly I'm not sure how this relates to my dialect or accent, but when I first thought of the way I talked the words shoulder and soldier came to mind. I've always had trouble pronouncing these words and I'm not sure why. I guess I can't make the two different sounds or something.